Let Love Bleed Red
by XxWallflowerxX
Summary: When you lose the person you love most, you have to find something-someone-to hold on for. T for language.
1. Chapter One

George leaned over the sink, watching as the water slowly turned red. His stomach twisted with pain and hunger. He hadn't eaten in days. Not since...

"George, honey?" His mother knocked on the door, concern filling her voice. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, mum." He called back, waving his wand over his arms to clean them of blood, but not healing the cuts. He watched blood leak slowly out of the deep cuts again. His tears for his dead brother splattered onto his arm, mixing with the blood and stinging lightly.

"Dinner's on the table, dear." Molly called through the door.

George didn't care about food though; how could he ever eat again? He bent over as a hunger pain shot through him. He was almost too hungry to even look at food. The sent of the food in the kitchen twisted his stomach even more. He dry heaved over the toilet; he couldn't puke with nothing in his stomach.

"I'm not hungry." He lied, pulling down his sleeves and opening the door.

Molly Weasley had also lost a lot of weight, her face looked too narrow. Her thin wrists looked as though they couldn't hold the weight of her hands. She managed a small smile, "Please come eat." She pleaded.

George mustered a tiny smile of his own, "I ate at the store.", he lied.

Molly looked doubtful, grabbing George's large hand in her small one, "Don't starve yourself, he wouldn't want that..." She trailed off at the look on her son's face.

"Well, I didn't want him to die." George retorted, then regretted it when his mother's face crumpled.

Tears spilled down her cheeks; George grabbed her in his arms, ignoring the pain shooting up his arms. "'m sorry mum, I didn't mean to..."

"It's alright, dear." She muttered into his once-broad chest. She pulled away, wiping at the tears on her face, and smiling up at George, who was stooping under the low ceiling. "I'll keep dinner on the stove."

George nodded, but he was no longer paying attention. His thoughts had already turned to that explosion.

He remembered when the breath had knocked out of him when he was blasted back. He blacked out for a moment or two, before stumbling into a standing position and wincing at the burns on his face and shoulder.

He had looked around for Fred, and instead found Percy kneeling on the ground in front of a broken body. George had stumbled towards him, rolling his eyes; of course Percy would feel bad about killing a Death Eater. He walked up to him, his eyes falling first on the red hair, then the long limbed body of his dead brother. George heard a ringing in his one remaining ear. He fell to his knees, and started frantically feeling around for a pulse. When he didn't tears began to stream down his face. Numbly he reached for his brothers hand. George forgot which words he had screamed at his twin, but he would never forget Percy screaming that he was sorry, beating on Fred's chest.

...

George started up the stairs to their-his room. He turned the doorknob, and collapsed onto the bed nearest the door, Fred's bed. He breathed in the familiar sent of his brother; the faint sent of something like gunpowder and something that was just Fred. He felt familiar tears prickle his eyes and a pounding in his lone ear. He wasn't sure whether the anger or sadness was more consuming. The two emotions felt like one, intertwined and too hard to seperate. The anger was more towards himself for not being able to save his brother. But he was also angry at Fred. For leaving him all alone. George didn't know how to be alone.

There was a knock at his door. "You awake?" Ron called through the door, then opened it.

"Yeah?" George inquired dully.

"How are you?" Ron leaned in the doorway.

George chuckled darkly, "Bloody fantastic."

Ron didn't speek for a moment. "That was a dumb question, I know..."

George didn't repsond, but his thoughts swirled darkly; he just wanted to be alone, but being alone wasn't a welcome thing either. He was terrified of it. He already felt alone without his twin.

"Are you ever going to eat?" George had lost a lot of weight in the past weeks. He probably weighted less than Ginny.

"I'm not hungry." George muttered through stabbing hunger pains.

"You're going to fucking kill yourself if you don't eat soon." Ron told him, "And that won't help mum any. With two sons dead."

He paused, "And it wouldn't help any of us either. We can't lose both of you. Who else will make us laugh?" George looked up.

"I mean, Percy's got a stick up his arse, and we haven't got Charlie or Bill around to cheer us up. We need you, mate." Ron tried a smile. George mimicked him, his mouth quirking up at one end. He still didn't get up, or head to the kitchen to eat, but he felt as though he might soon.

Ron left the room, calling over his shoulder as he left, "Oh, and Luna's coming to stay. You'll be sharing your room with her."

George groaned slightly, and looked around the disheveled and disorganized room. He looked at the pile of clothes and books on the bed next to him. The sheets probably hadn't been cleaned in years. His mum probably expected him to tidy up the place.

He sat up in bed and threw off his shirt, examining the scars and newer cuts all up his arms and his stomach and sides. He was still bleeding a little in some places. His blue shirt was completely stained red on the inside. George had the fleeting notion of cutting until he bled out, but then thought of what Ron had said about his mother.

And he wouldn't want to stain the sheets more when they had a guest coming.


	2. Chapter Two

A knock sounded on the door, starting George from his light sleep.

"What?" He called groggily, pulling his pillow over his head.

"You need to get up." Molly Weasley burst into the room.

"Why?" George groaned and curled up under Fred's blanket.

Molly sighed and started opening curtains and stuffing dirty clothes into the laundry basket at her hip. "You have a guest coming soon. And you need to tidy this room up."

George groaned again, and ignored his mother for a few more moments, until his blanket was ripped off his body. He sat straight up and glared at his mother.

"I'm up." He muttered sourly, "Why's she coming anyway?"

"Her father just passed away, and she can't stay at her house anymore." Molly responded, stuffing the sheets from George's bed into her basket, and wrinkling her nose at the smell of sweat.

"Oh." George muttered, and pulled on his jeans over his boxers, looking around the room. His stomach sank. It hadn't been cleaned in years, and he hadn't moved anything since he moved back in after the War, weeks before. He had never been able to bring himself to touch any or Fred's belongings, other than his bed, which gave him comfort rather than brought him to tears.

He waved his wand, muttering a simple cleaning spell while his mother bustled out the door; he watched things fly into place with a lump in his throat. He watched books fly onto shelves, clean clothes hang themselves up or fly into drawers. George held in tears when the socks folded themselves-Fred used to say that socks of all things should never, ever, be folded-he then shook himself for being so stupid and wanting cry over something like that.

He waved his wand again, casting a air-freshening charm over the room; the sweet smell or gunpowder and everything that was Fred immediately disappeared, replaced with a faint scent of flowers. George quickly sniffed the sheets on Fred's bed, and was relieved to find that they still smelled like his brother. His mother wouldn't be so cruel as the wash the sheets on his bed, not yet; though George suspected that Molly was letting Luna stay in his room so he'd have to get rid of reminders of his dead brother.

George ignored the rumbling of his stomach, and leaned agains the wall to let his vision clear. It had been going black ever since he had stopped eating. And his walking was a lot less graceful now. He hadn't touched a broom since before the War, and had no plans to do so now, and not just because he knew he'd probably fall off.

He left the room to go outside to the garden. No one else was out there, so he could be alone for a little while, until someone decided to bother him again. Under the shade of a tree, George observed his father working in his shed, sparks flying and loud bangs emitting from the small space. He watched his mother flitting in and outside of the house, picking up things and charming the bushes to trim themselves. He watched Ron and Harry degnome the garden. He heard the music being blasted from Ginny's room, and watched when  
Harry snuck up through her window on his broom, somehow going unnoticed by Molly.

George tried unsuccessfully to get up and help clean the house, but he was instead stuck remembering Bill and Fluer's wedding. He thought about how he and Fred had talked about their own weddings, and skipped out on cleaning the house. It was moments like this when he missed his brother most; when he was left alone to his own thoughts. Everyone else had someone to talk to, someone who understood them, he thought when Hermione Apparated and ran into Ron's arms. George couldn't talk to anyone about his twin's death; the only person he wanted to talk to about it was the one person he couldn't, as he was the one who had died.

"George?" A female voice spoke from above him, he snapped out of his thoughts and looked up.

Her long blonde hair flowed almost to her butt, her large, bright blue eyes gleamed much too happily, and she looked much too old to be his sister's friend.

"Hello." She said, smiling too brightly for someone whose father had just died, but that was Luna for you; unfailingly happy.

"Hey." George replied, stuffing his hands in his pockets.

Unnoticed by him, the whole family, including Harry and Hermione, had appeared around him. He felt uncomfortable with them all looking at him, so he pasted a smile on his face, and reached out a hand to shake Luna's.

She grabbed his hand and instead pulled him into a hug, he stumbled and had to stoop a little; she was much shorter than him. "Thank you for letting me stay with you." She spoke into his chest, as though he had offered. "And, I'm sorry about your brother." George stiffened in her arms, and she just hugged him tighter.

Eventually she let him go, seeming not to notice that he hadn't hugged her back. She went on to hug everyone else, who hugged her tightly and muttered their condolences and hellos. Molly led the way into the house, and everyone started to follow, glancing back at George, obviously wondering if he would follow too. After a few deep breaths he did.

He walked into the kitchen, leaning in the doorway. Luna was talking with his mother animatedly about some crazy idea of her's or another. George held in the urge to roll his eyes as she went on about Wargles or whatever she called them. He wondered how he'd be able to live in the same room as this girl with her weird ideas and beliefs without laughing at her or offending her somehow.

Once it was past six, Molly decided to show Luna to her and George's room, telling the girl she needed to sleep and unpack. George followed, hoping to fall asleep early, and get used to having this strange girl in his room on a semi-permanant basis.

"Help her unpack." Molly kissed George on his cheek, and pointed her finger at him sternly, "I did raise you to have manners after all."

George rolled his eyes, "Sure, mum." He kissed the top of her head, "G'night."

"Good night Luna." Molly smiled brightly at Luna.

"Good night, Mrs. Weasley. Thanks again." Luna smiled back, tucking her long blonde hair behind her ear.

"Call me Molly, dear. And it's no trouble." Molly ducked out the door.

George sat on his bad, picking up a book from the side table, trying to find something to occupy himself with. Luna sang a song under her breath while she unpacked her things, putting her clothes into her side of the armoire. "Was this his bed?" She asked after a moment, pointing to the bed she'd be sleeping in.

George quickly shook his head, "No it's mine." He swallowed a lump in his throat, and felt hot tears prickle his eyes. He shook his head again, trying to clear his head.

"Oh. I'm sorry if I upset you." Luna said in her dreamy voice, looking down at her feet, which were in yellow rain boots despite the nice weather. She was wearing very ripped jeans, and a loose band T-shirt. Some Muggle band George had never heard of.

"S'alright." He looked down at his hands, which were shaking like they did we got upset. "Do you need help?" He offered, suddenly needing something to do with his hands.

"Oh, no." Luna smiled at him, and pulled her wand out from behind her ear. She waved her wand at the vase next to her bad, and conjured a bunch of unfamiliar flowers. They looked odd but smelled nice. George tried to ignore the thought that the sent pushed the smell of Fred even farther away. It wasn't Luna's fault.

"Could you look away for a moment?" Luna inquired, "I need to change."

"Oh, sure." George turned away, face getting hot. He hadn't thought about the fact that they'd both have to change in the same room. The bathroom was too far away to be practical, and the hallway was to easy for people to walk out and see you in.

He could faintly hear the rustle of her jeans hitting the floor, and her shirt following shortly after. "Okay." Luna said eventually.

George turned and headed to his drawers, pulling out a shirt and boxers. "Um, could you...?" He asked, his face growing hot again.

Luna turned without a word, sitting on her bed.

George slowly slid off his jeans, pulling on his boxers and then stripping his long sleeved shirt to replace it with one more practical for sleeping in. "Okay." He repeated Luna's word. She turned back around, and crossed the room to examen the bookshelf.

"Do you mind if I borrow something? I need to read something to fall asleep." She asked him, glancing over at him, blushing slightly at the sight of him in his boxers.

"Sure." George crawled into his bed, facing the opposite way. Luna chose s book from the shelf, and settled onto her bed. He could hear pages rustling and Luna's even breathing. After a while he heard a light snore emit from her side. He turned to find the book dropped loosely on her chest, her hair sprawled across his pillow, and her mouth opened slightly.

George got up, and took the book off of her chest, laying it down on the side table, keeping it's place and shutting off the lamp next the bed.

He drifted off to sleep to the sound of her snoring, getting some sleep for the first time in weeks; he hadn't realized that the absence of Fred's snores had been keeping him awake at night.


	3. Chapter Three

She woke to the screaming.

At first she thought she was back home with her father, and he was having a nightmare(something that happened frequently). Luna had to calm his screams and lie with him until he fell back into a fitful sleep, his dreams plagued with visions of her mother. It was nights like that Luna was grateful she didn't have memories of a mother that she could miss.

She sat upright in bed, and hastily turned on the light, heading to George's bedside. He was covered in a sheen of sweat, and biting his lip as if to hold in the heartbroken screams he was emitting. He had kicked his sheets to the bottom of the bed, and was writhing around as though in great agony.

"COME BACK!" He shouted, kicking the air and narrowly missing Luna.

She grabbed his shoulders and shook him, "George." She spoke firmly, trying to wake him.

He only kicked and screamed more.

"George!" She shouted it this time, and shook him harder. She had hated to see her father like this, but somehow seeing George broken and crying like a child was more painful.

George took in shuddering breath to let out another sob, but instead sucked in another breath when Luna slapped him, hard.

His eyes snapped open, and he yelped, shooting straight up in bed. "What the hell, Luna?" He demanded, rubbing his cheek.

"You were having a nightmare." She defended herself, suddenly feeling bad for hitting him, "I'm sorry."

He let out a sigh, wiping a mix of sweat and tears from his face. "S'okay. Thanks."

"I'm surprised no one woke up." Luna remarked, sitting back on her bed and looking at her watch. It was half past three A.M..

"I charmed my room to be soundproof." He told her, "Mum and Dad need their sleep. I don't need them fretting over me." He stood up and pulled off his shirt, throwing on the ground.

Luna flushed slightly, and averted her eyes.

"It's a bloody furnace in here." George remarked, wandering around the room aimlessly, now fully awake.

Under the light his arms and torso where very visible. He'd lost a lot of weight since she'd seen him last, after the battle. The skin color on his arms was barely visible under a crisscross of scars and red wounds. His stomach and sides matched. Luna flitted her eyes away again, not wanting him to notice her looking.

George glanced down at himself, a look of utter disgust on his face. He quickly grabbed a new shirt and pulled it on over his head. His arms still poked out though; almost completely raw, healing skin. That had to hurt worse than the actual cutting, Luna thought to herself. "Sorry for waking you." George spoke after a long stretch of silence, looking up at Luna.

"It's fine." Luna assured him quickly, not wanting him to feel bad.

"It might happen more." He warned her, "I barely sleep...and when I do..." He trailed off, voice raw with emotion.

Luna didn't say anything, just looked down at her hands, absently tugging at the bottom of her shirt. "I'll wake you up." She looked up at him, and he smiled a little.

"Thanks." George told her, sounding sincere. He collapsed onto his dead brother's bed, wrapping himself in the sheets and inhaling.

Luna flipped off the light, laying down in her own bed. She'd never be able to fall asleep now.

From the other side of the room, she heard George whisper, voice cracking, "I miss you."


	4. Chapter Four

Luna rolled over onto her back, staring up at the ceiling. She hadn't been able to fall back asleep after George had woken her with his screams. That was okay though, she was used to it. After the week she'd spent at The Burrow she grew accustomed to George's strange habits.

1. At around three every morning he would wake up screaming.

2. He didin't eat

3. He spent about an hour in the bath every day, and returned clothed in a long sleeved shirt with very subtle bloodstains on the edges.

4. He had to lay down and rest every few hours due to dizziness. (reference 1)

5. He never let anyone see him cry.

Yes, Luna thought, George did all of these things, yet no one in his family seemed to notice. Either they were all too far gone themselves, or they didn't want to notice how badly he was suffering. George never let on how upset he was when his mother asked him, and he always claimed he ate when no one else was in the kitchen. But he was broken, and he didn't eat. Luna suspected he hadn't in weeks. Not since Fred died.

Luna didn't want to join the Weasleys in trying to force-feed George, or try to engage him in normal conversation. Mostly they just talked anout Fred. The others seemed to think they should avoid the subject as much as possible, but what was the point? He'd be thinking of his brother anyway. Why not let him say what he thought out loud.

Every once in a while George would let slip something that frightened Luna. Then he'd cover it up with a cough or a charming smile. But his charming smile had lost some of it's charm from lack of use. Luna didn't notice though. She was just as charmed as always.

She heard a stirring from the bed next to her, she rolled over quietly. George was sitting up in bed, facing away from her. He peeled off his shirt, and the moonlight glistened off his scars. Some were from the war; the burns that covered his once-muscular back and trailed down his arms. He'd gotten those in the explosion that took his brother, she knew. Those scars must of been the ones that drove him craziest, as constant reminders of Fred.

Then she looked at the scars on his arms. Some were shiny and white, some where red and jagged. Then of course, there were the new marks that hadn't yet become scars. She tried to avoid looking at those; George got upset and flustered every time he noticed her noticing them.

He turned very suddenly, and whipped his shirt across the room. Luna squealed when the shirt flew past her head, then covered her mouth, guilty to have been caught watching him.

"Hey." George didn't look surprised to see her awake. He sat back down and faced her. She sat up.

"Hi." Luna was blushing furiously at the sight of George in his boxers, ribs visible and poking out from his once-muscular chest that was now as scrawny and skinny as it had been in his third year.

"Sorry if I woke you." George apologized flatly, staring at a spot somewhere behind her head.

"It's alright, you didn't." Luna squeaked out, flustered. She started playing with her hair absently, before dropping her long dishwater-blonde locks back down.

"That's good." George's voice was still flat.

"You okay?" She asked, already knowing the answer.

He shrugged, "As okay as I've been, I guess."

Luna nodded, thinking of her father.

"You?" George finally met her eyes, his dark brown eyes robbed of their spark.

"As okay as I've been." Luna responded, trying a small smile.

George smiled back at her, a real smile stretching his face, "Good."

"You should smile more." Luna informed him, "You look like you weigh a lot more when you smile."

His smile faltered a little, "So if I smiled they'd stop noticing how thin I am?" he asked seriously, like maybe he'd found a new plan.

She shrugged, "It just made me lose focus on the rest of you, I guess."

He grinned again, and she couldn't tell if he was really smiling now, or testing her theory.

Either way it worked; she lost focus on his frail body and criss-cross of ugly scars and just saw the old George Weasley grinning back at her.


	5. Chapter Five

George leaned across the small gap between them, smiling at her. It wasn't a genuine smile, not totally. He was testing out Luna's "less thin" theory. He saw her bright blue eyes light up at the sight of his smile, and she responded with a smile of her own. He could tell she wasn't faking happiness, and he almost felt bad for deceiving her.

"You're faking." She announced, her smile slipping off her face, dreamy voice accusing.

George dropped his smile too, and her eyes flickered across his body. "Sorry."

"It's okay. I was faking too." She smiled again. Now he wasn't sure if this one was real either.

"So we're both good at faking happy, eh?" He questioned, a wry smile twisting his lips.

"It's all I've done my whole life." Luna admitted, a little wry smile of her own appeared. He hadn't even known Luna could smile wryly.

"That's hard to believe." George leaned forward again, and Luna didn't move back this time.

"Believe it or not, it's true." Her voice was suddenly a lot less dreamy.

"I don't doubt it." George replied, "You're just a _really _good faker."

Luna's face flickered with a seemingly genuine smile, "I'm aware." Her eyes suddenly had a playful light in them, "Just ask Neville." She muttered, mostly to herself.

George would have choked if he'd been eating, "_What?"_ he laughed.

"Oh, nothing." She grinned back at him.

"No, tell me."

"No."

"Yes."

"No."

"_Yes._"

"_No._"

George stared her down.

Luna stared back.

"Faking what, exactly?" George asked, a playful grin quirked his mouth.

"Nothing." Luna giggled.

"So you really faked it? Like the whole time?" George asked, feeling more than a little bad for Luna.

"Maybe." She smiled mysteriously, and he felt a pang in his stomach that had nothing to do with hunger.

Before he'd thought of Luna as his sister's friend. As an innocent little kid. But now the image of Luna doing something she had to pretend to enjoy was stuck in his head. He had a brief thought that if it had been with him she would have had to fake it.

He shook that thought out of his head. That's just something you can't think about your roommate/friend and only confidant. But the way she smiled at him made him forget that he wasn't supposed to think about her that way. That he wasn't supposed to think about picking her up and throwing her against the wall and having his way with her. And by the look on her face, she seemed to be okay with those thoughts. But George shook that out of his mind too. He needed to stop this.

George abruptly turned away from Luna, laying back down on his side, "I'm tired. G'night." He muttered, trying to get those images out of his mind. Luna, her long blonde hair streaming down her back, damp with sweat. Her moaning his name.

He _really _needed to stop.

...

Luna faced the other way, and tried to calm her racing heart. She told herself that she couldn't have those sort of thoughts about your roommate. Especially not when the particular roommate is going through a serious depression and is too frail at the moment to even support their own body weight. George wasn't ready for anything like that anyway. He wasn't even eating, and he was losing more blood everyday. Luna had to help him in other ways. And _not_ like that.

Luna thought about George picking her up by her legs, and wrapping them around himself. She thought about him running his hands through her hair, down her back, her sides: everywhere. She wanted his hands everywhere.

She quickly shook her head, and pulled the covers over her head more tightly so she wouldn't have to hear him breathing next to her. His breath seemed heavier and even more labored than usual.

"Lu?" George muttered from across the room, turning to face her. She turned too, but didn't dare look him in the eye.

"Yeah?" She asked, voice trembling a little.

"What are you thinking about?" George asked her quietly.

"What are _you_ thinking about?" She asked in response.

"Too dirty for your innocent ears." She could hear the smile in his voice.

"Yeah? I'm not that innocent though."

...

George sucked in a breath at her words. Why the hell did she have to be so sexy all of a sudden.

"You don't want to know." He countered.

"Bet." She rolled over and faced him, a playful smile on her face.

"I don't do bets anymore." He replied seriously.

"Okay, then I _dare_ you to tell me."

"I don't do dares either."

The two stared at each other for a while, time stretching between them.

"What do you do?" She asked him, suddenly serious, "You don't eat, don't sleep. What _do_ you do?"

George paused. "Miss him."

And just like that, it was gone. His few moments of not thinking about Fred. The staggering emotions were back, and they were raging worse than ever. He wanted to tell Fred about whatever it was that was going on in his head. He wanted to tell Fred about his strange new roommate who suddenly seemed years older.

At least he'd had an hour or so of not thinking about his brother.


	6. Chapter Six

George woke up the next day to pounding on his door. He groaned and rolled over, covering his head with his pillow. "Go away." He moaned.

"If that's how you feel, then alright." A familiar voice came through the door.

George shot up in bed and ran to his door, ripping it open to find his brother, Charlie standing there.

"Charlie!" He hugged his brother tightly.

"Wow, I didn't know you missed me that much, mate." Charlie grinned down at his brother, running a hand through his shoulder-length red hair.

"I did." George grinned back, he hadn't seen Charlie in months...not since Fred's funeral.

"I missed you too. You gonna come down for breakfast? You're roommate is already down there." Charlie winked at him.

George flushed slightly.

"Why's she in here anyway? Why not my room? Or Bill's?" Charlie asked, leaning in the door.

"I guess Mum wanted someone in here so I couldn't off myself." George smile mock-cheerfully.

Charlie's grin slipped off his face, "Don't joke like that."

"Sorry." George mumbled, and picked at his sleeves.

"Come down and eat." Charlie started to walk downstairs. George's stomach shrunk at the thought of food. He leaned in his doorway, suddenly dizzy. Charlie looked back at him and raised an eyebrow, "C'mon."

George had no choice but to follow him. The whole family, including Harry and Hermione, was gathered around the table. Luna sat in a seat next to Ginny. The seat on her other side was empty. Charlie went to sit by his mother, dropping a kiss on her forehead before sitting down next to her. Harry was sitting across the table from Ginny, and the two seemed to be avoiding each others' eyes awkwardly.

George sat down next to Luna, still in his boxers and a jumper from the night before. She glanced at him and smiled. The kind of smile that lit up her whole face and shined through her bright blue eyes.

What the fuck kind of pansy shit was he thinking? He shook his head, and declined the offer of bacon from Percy. He looked at the table, laden with food and felt slightly sick. Luna glanced at him again, a tiny frown on her face at the sight of his empty plate. He hastily grabbed for the plate with bacon and piled three pieces on his plate. She smiled a tiny smile and turned to her own plate.

Damn, now he had to eat the bacon. He lifted one piece to his lips and took a tiny bite. He could feel all of their eyes on him. He started to break out in nervous sweats and put the bacon down. His mother looked down at her own plate. George watched a tear drip onto her plate. He picked up the bacon and shoved the whole thing in his mouth, then picked up the other two pieces and shoved them in his mouth as well. He felt sick as soon as the food hit his stomach, but he just smiled and piled some more food onto his plate. He managed to pick at it until it looked like a smaller amount, and then dismissed himself.

George headed straight to the bathroom, and climbed into the bathtub and just sat there. He was sure he looked mad, but oh well. He closed the shower curtain around himself and peeled off his jumper. He just sat there in his boxers, trying to resist the urge to vomit or cut. His stomach rejected the food. His hands shook.

A knock sounded on the door a few moments later. "George?" Luna's voice called through the door.

"Yeah?" He called back, his hands gripped the sides of the tub so hard his knuckles started to turn white.

"Are you alright?"

"Yeah." He called back false-cheerily.

"I know you're lying." She sounded closer to the door.

George didn't respond. He just laid there in the tub, quietly sobbing.

He didn't even know why he was crying. No one had said Fred's name. No particular memory came to mind. He was just a wreck.

"I'm coming in." Luna told him before opening the door and locking it behind her.

...

George was sitting in the tub crying noiselessly with the curtains drawn around him. His face was red and screwed up, his freckles seemed to move with his tears.

His eyes were red and glassy. His fists were pressed into his stomach like he could stop the pain. He looked at Luna without saying anything, and she felt her heart break a little for him.

She had never had siblings, or really any friends that she that close to. She had no idea how to console him. Of course she missed her father; she just didn't know how to feel. He didn't feel dead. It felt as though he was on a trip without her, and he would return at any moment with gifts and stories.

Luna climbed into the tiny tub with George and wrapped her arms around his neck, and just let him cry into her shirt. He shook and whimpered like a baby, and he gripped her tightly too him, like he never wanted to let her go.

"Don't leave." He whispered, hands in her hair.

"I'm not going to. I promise." Luna felt tears prickle her eyes.

George didn't speak anymore after that. He slowly calmed down, his breaths slowing along with his heartbeat. He pulled away from Luna, and she smiled down at him. He leaned forward a little as She dried his tears with her sleeve. She felt her heart start to beat faster as she realized she was practically on top of him in the tiny bathtub. George smiled a little sadly back at her, and tightened his arms around her waist, pulling her into him.

They were so close their noses touched. Luna let out a quick breath that sounded like a squeal and a sigh at the same time. For some reason George thought it was the most utterly adorable thing he'd ever heard. He leaned forward again, and pulled away quickly when a sharp rap sounded on the door.

"Luna? Are you in there, dear?" Molly called out.

"Erm, yes, Mrs. Weasley!" Luna called back, and jumped off of George, who gave her a very pouty frown.

"Having a bath?" Molly asked, "And for Merlin's sake, call me Molly, dear."

"Yes, I am having a bath, Molly." Luna answered, her cheeks blushing a deep red.

"Alright, when you get the time do you think you could look for Georgie? No one knows where he is." Molly sounded worried.

"Will do!" Luna called back cheerily, not even looking at George now.

They listened to Molly's retreating steps, and Luna turned back to George who was now lounging in the bath. He grinned at her, "So you're having a bath, eh?"

She swatted his shoulder. "No."

"Awe. Too bad." George smiled impishly.

"I'm going to ignore you and leave now." Luna held in a smile and slipped out the door, with George on her heels.

Charlie was walking out of his room, and gave them a strange look. "Having a bath?" He asked, and whistled cheerily by them. Harry quietly exited Charlie's room and walked quickly in the other direction.

Luna raised an eyebrow at George, who cocked his head and glanced in both directions. "Where they going over Quidditch plays or something?" He looked at Luna, really curious.

"I don't think so." Luna grinned.

"They weren't..." George trailed off, "They aren't..."

"They might..." Luna cut herself off at the look George gave her. "They aren't." She assured him quickly.

She started to walk away, and singsonged over her shoulder, "'They are."


	7. Chapter Seven

"Eat? Please?" Luna sat at the end of George's bed, pushing a plate towards him.

He wrinkled his nose and pushed it back.

"You're thinner than me. Eat." She pushed it back.

He scowled at her, and picked up a fork, taking a very small bite of the cake she brought him. What better way to get him to eat than give him sweets?

She smiled at him, and stood up from his bed, heading over the the armoire that was mostly filled with her clothes. "Okay, so we're going out today."

George looked at her, another forkful of cake hanging in the air between them, "Why?"

"You need sunlight. Social interaction." She smiled her "do what I say or I'll sexually frustrate you until you want to explode" smile.

Well, that was how he saw it.

"Please?" She bit her lip and clasped her hands.

"I'm already eating for you, now you want me to go out into the world?" He shook his head, mock-disapproving.

"Yes." She turned back to the closet and began leafing through her clothes, "Besides you need to go to the store."

His stomach dropped and he pushed the barely eaten cake away from him. He'd only been to the store once since Fred died. And that was only to clean out the fridge so there wouldn't be rotting food. He didn't want to go back.

"You need to." Luna seemed to read his mind, "It's probably all dusty, and all your shipments have probably been in for weeks." She reminded him.

George groaned and buried his face in his pillow, wrapping his blanket around him like a little kid. "No."

Luna tried to pull the pillow off his head, but he just pulled it closer, and wiggled down under the blankets deeper. She took her pillow and whacked him on the back with it. George shot up, still tangled in his blankets and grabbed her wrist to stop her from hitting him again. While she was distracted he took his pillow and hit her on the head with it.

She squealed and pulled her wrist free, hitting him back with her pillow. "You're such a jerk."

"You started it!" George hit her again, and she responded by tackling him and pinning his wrists down.

Of course now this meant Luna was on top of him.

"Oh." She said, and started to move away. George pulled her back down and they stared at each other, still breathless from the pillow fight.

George ran his hands down her sides and hips, watching in fascination when she shivered. He ran his hands back up her sides and under her shirt, over her stomach. He chuckled when she jumped a little at his touch and tried to move away. He grabbed her hips and kept her in place. She let out an adorable sigh/squeal and bit her lip, blushing a little.

"You're cute when you're embarrassed." George informed her, running his hands back over her stomach and dipping his fingers barely below her waistband.

"You're mean when you're turned on." Luna informed him.

"I know." He roughly pulled her closer to him, so that her face was an inch away from his.

She licked her lips out of habit, and he couldn't help it; he kissed her.

And that's when his door burst open.

"Lu, you'll never-" Ginny trailed off.

"This must look very bad." George said. Thinking about how they were positioned; Luna straddling him, her pinning his arms down by the wrists.

Luna jumped off of him, her pale cheeks suddenly flaming red. She pulled the bottom of her shirt back into place, and promptly walked out of the room, Ginny at her heels. "Lu!" she called after her, slamming the door as she went.

George rolled over and groaned into his pillow. "Cock-blocked by my own fucking sister." He mumbled.


End file.
